


That Smile

by capricious__capricorn



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Bullying, Confessions, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, George is an asshole, Good Draco Malfoy, Hurt/Comfort, I'm Bad At Tagging, Invisibility Cloak (Harry Potter), Love at First Sight, Love/Hate, M/M, Overheard Confessions, Pining Draco Malfoy, Redeemed Draco Malfoy, Redemption, Sad Draco Malfoy, Spying, Unrequited Love, alright it’s a little bit of angst and a lot of fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-21
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:09:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,239
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27655274
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/capricious__capricorn/pseuds/capricious__capricorn
Summary: "But I have news for you Lord Malfoy, you are nothing. A worthless piece of shit, a disgusting Deatheater who should just do the world a favor and AK himself. After all, it’s not like anyone would miss you.”Draco’s ears were buzzing, his mind spinning with those hateful words, each one just confirming all the things that he had thought since the end of the war.To his disgrace his eyes filled with tears, but he couldn’t have cared less as he stared at the hate filled eyes of George Weasley.“You're right. Who knows, maybe one of these days I’ll make your wish come true.”*Or, the one in which Draco is pinning and George is an asshole.
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/George Weasley, Harry Potter/Charlie Weasley, Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley
Comments: 3
Kudos: 201





	1. Confrotation

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! Welcome to this little story. I've been writing for a long time but it was usually original work, this is the first time I've dared to write HP fanfiction, and I'm feeling very nervous about it. 
> 
> This little plot-bunny has been jumping around my head for more than two years now and it’s seriously starting to mess with my regular writing so I’ve decided to just write it down and get rid of it.  
> Sorry if it’s filled with cliches and such, but I’ve been fantasizing about Draco and George for so long that I can’t really care. 
> 
> Hopefully I did a half-decent job, and I'm looking forward to hearing your opinion. If you like this, I’ve got another story in mind, this one Snarry, so let me know if you want that one too.  
> Cheers! <3

“Are you sure, my dear?”, his mother asked, her face a cool mask as usual, but a slight tremor in her voice giving her away. 

She was worried about him ever since he got out of Azkaban, Draco knew that without actually having it said. It was in the way her eyes kept following him around the house as if trying to make sure that he was really there, unharmed and safe. And yet, he couldn’t find it in himself to care. 

He knew that that was unfair to his mother, whose decision to save Potter in the Great battle was probably the only reason he was here and not rotting in Azkaban. But still, a small, petty part of him kept whispering that he wouldn’t have been there in the first place if only her and Lucius had been decent parents instead of hateful fanatics, happy to follow a monster as long as it suited them. 

“Yes.", he said, merely above a whisper, his throat still a bit sore after almost a month in that hell hole. He continued with his packing, placing a few muggle shirts inside his bag while pretending that he couldn’t see a disapproving look his mother shot him at the sight of them. 

Draco had changed. Which shouldn’t come as a surprise after everything that has happened during the previous two years. After all, if having a madman as a roommate, being forced to come up with a way to kill the most powerful wizard in the country, and spending a short but no less horrendous month in Azkaban doesn’t do it, then you are either a complete idiot or there is something seriously wrong with you. 

And there were a lot of things wrong about Draco but being an idiot wasn’t one. 

He had long realized that the bigotry he had been spoon-fed from the time he said his first word was complete and utter horse-shit. You just had to look at Hermione Granger and see that all those stories about muggles being inferior were not true. But Draco was a Malfoy, and it was his duty to protect and obey his family even if you don’t agree with them. So, he did, for years, he shut his mouth, listened to his father, followed in his footsteps, sneered, smirked and spouted, until he found himself in a dark, damp cell, hungry and cold, and completely alone. 

_Fuck that!_ he thought as he pulled the string on his backpack and threw it over his shoulder. 

_Malfoys can go fuck themselves._

♥ 

“No shame, that one. To dare to come here after…”   


He continued with his work already used to whispers, his wand held high as he said the incantation, the feeling of pride filling him as he watched the big stone boulder falling into place as if it was never disturbed. He rolled his shoulders and stretched his back, hearing them pop as he did so, before turning around, deciding to make a small break and get something to eat. 

He had been back at Hogwarts for a week now, along with a few dozen witches and wizards, all willing to lend a hand in rebuilding the castle destroyed in the Battle. 

He remembered his first day, the shock of seeing his once home away from home in ruins, the magnificent castle of his school days all but dust. He barely managed to control himself as he watched with wide eyes since the only thing he wished at that moment was to crumble in a heap and cry. 

But he didn’t, instead, he held his head high as he walked down the courtyard and up the steps, aware that every eye was on him as he stepped into the Great Hall, or what was left of it. 

“The fuck!?”, came a surprised shout from his left, a voice that suspiciously sounded like Weasel’s, but he ignored it, along with a steady rise of whispers from everyone else as he walked toward McGonagall, the newly-appointed Headmistress, who was standing where the teacher’s table used to be. 

Once there, he offered her his time and wand, which she surprisingly took without a second of doubt, her stern face giving him an approving nod before she sent him to the west side of the castle and that was it. 

He stopped in front of a long table in the middle of Great Hall filled with plates of sandwiches, fruit, and a dozen jugs of pumpkin juice, thinking about what he was in the mood for, before picking a sandwich and an apple. He debated on staying in the Hall and eating there in order to escape the suffocating heat outside only made worse by him having to wear a long-sleeved shirt in order to hide a certain tattoo. But one glance around told him that it was a bad idea as his eyes fell on Dean Tomas and Seamus Finnegan throwing him death glares. So, he ducked his head and hurried out of the hall, not really looking where he was going as he rounded the corner toward the dungeons which resulted in him colliding with another person and almost falling on his ass in the process. 

“Sorry.”, he quickly said as he bent down to catch the apple that he had dropped during the collision, the same one which quickly fell to the ground once again as the front of his shirt was seized in a tight grip before he was slammed into the wall, his head connecting with the hard stone harshly and making his head spin. 

“Sorry! You are sorry? And here I thought you didn’t have a funny bone in your body!”, the person that had slammed him into the wall growled, the spit hitting his face as they did so. 

_Fuck_. 

Draco thought as his vision slowly came back to focus as his eyes fell on the person standing in front of him, the one he was dreading seeing again. 

George Weasley. 

In hindsight, he should have expected it, since his whole family was here, the beacons of light that they were, but after spending the whole week at the castle with no sight of him, Draco had begun to hope that he wouldn’t be coming. That should have been his warning. After all, hope was something Draco didn’t deserve. 

He let his eyes travel over George’s face, something deep inside of him wincing at the sight of the man. He looked a mess. His clothes were rumpled and his hair in such disarray that hasn’t it been red he could pass as Potter’s brother. His eyes were bloodshot, deep purple bags sitting beneath them, telling him that he wasn’t the only one struggling with insomnia. But the worst thing was the look in them, empty, barren, dead. 

Draco shook himself, unwilling to think about the feelings bubbling in his chest; he wouldn’t want them, no one would. 

“Well, we learn something new every day, don’t we Weasley?”, he said, wincing even as the words left his mouth as George’s face went from red to purple in seconds. 

_Well, goodbye world._

Draco thought, preparing for a punch or a curse that was surely coming. What he didn’t expect was the sound that left George’s mouth. Laughter. He was laughing. 

_Oh, Merlin. I broke him._

“I’m just gonna go.”, Draco said as the redhead doubled in half, but just as he was about to slip away, those hands were back on his shoulders, pinning him to the wall. 

“I have a question.”, George said seriously, his face as hard as stone, all the traces of the previous mirth gone, making Draco think that he had imagined the whole thing. 

“What’s it like, being you? I’m serious, I would really like to know. What’s it like being such a horrible human being? Do you even care? Of course, you don’t, you’re Draco Malfoy, and the only thing that’s important to Draco Malfoy is Draco Malfoy.” 

Draco stood there, not even trying to free himself anymore, every word hitting him like a whip. 

"But I have news for you Lord Malfoy, you are nothing. A worthless piece of shit, a disgusting Deatheater who should just do the world a favor and AK himself. After all, it’s not like anyone would miss you.” 

Draco’s ears were buzzing, his mind spinning with those hateful words, each one just confirming all the things that he had thought since the end of the war. 

To his disgrace, his eyes filled with tears, but he couldn’t have cared less as he stared at the hate-filled eyes of George Weasley. 

“You're right. Who knows, maybe one of these days I’ll make your wish come true.”, he whispered, for the first time voicing the thoughts that had been on his mind since the trial. 

At the words George jumped away as if burned, his eyes going wide as he stared at him in surprise. Draco, on the other hand, looked anywhere but at him, taking the opportunity to turn around and run, without a backward glance. 


	2. Curiosity killed the cat

“Blimey! Do you have to do that here!?”, Ron exclaimed, his face going green at the sight of his best friend wrapped in a passionate embrace with his older brother. 

For their part, Charlie just laughed while Harry moaned, still lip-locked, making Ron stand up and leave in a huff, murmuring about betrayal. 

As soon as he did so, the two love birds finally separated, both laughing at Ron’s expanse. It was funny, George thought, and once upon a time, he would have been right in the middle of it, urging them on and enjoying every second of it. But not anymore. 

He turned his back on the happy sight, his eyes going back to the fire crackling in the fireplace, his mind once again on the certain someone. 

No matter how much he tried, his thoughts kept circling back to the afternoon and his confrontation with the blond. He had been having a bad day in a month of bad days, and as soon as he crashed into Malfoy, he cracked. 

He said such horrible things at the time, not even caring, his mind filled with sorrow, and he meant them at the time. He meant them and that was probably the worst of it all. 

He kept thinking about Draco, about the look on his face as he spewed all those hateful words, about how the blond didn’t even flinch, as if those words were a part of his everyday routine. 

He flinched, remembering the blondes' parting words, something like dread swirling in his stomach. 

“I need your cloak and map!”, he suddenly exclaimed, surprising his brother and Harry so much so that the younger one fell out of Charlie's lap, banging his head and dropping his glasses in the process. 

“Ouch!” “What the fuck!”, his brother and Harry both exclaimed at the same time, as Charlie helped his boyfriend up. 

“Sorry.”, George quickly said, wincing as Harry rubbed his head while Charlie went in search of the raven head's glasses. 

“Do I even want to know why you need them?’, Harry asked not even waiting for an answer, already summoning the map and cloak and dumping them in George’s waiting arms. 

“Not likely.”, George quipped before turning around and heading for the portrait hole anxious to get away before anybody did try to question him. 

He breathed a sigh of relief as he left the Gryffindor common room, wrapping the cloak around himself and disappearing from sight. 

He loved his family, he really did, but they could be overbearing, especially since the end of the war. His mother was by far the worst of them, hovering nearby almost as if waiting for him to finally crack. 

He understood her, more than anyone else probably, since Fred’s death had hit them the hardest. He had been a mess the first week, unable to sleep or eat anything without getting sick. A shell of a man, he heard his father describe him during a conversation with Kingsley, unaware that he could hear him. 

But he was getting better, slowly, as much as it was possible since he was sure that he could never be what he once was, not without... 

_No, stop. Don’t think about him._

He shook his head, unwilling to entertain the thoughts of what would never be, before pulling out the map and whispering the correct words. 

His eyes flew over the map, quickly spotting the dot he was looking for, thankful that it was summer and that the rest of the students weren’t there making it easy to find him. 

One of his eyebrows rose in surprise at the location of the dot, before furrowing in confusion. 

_What in Merlin’s name is he doing in the girl’s bathroom?_

George shook his head in bewilderment, before putting the map in his pocket and making his way downstairs. 

♥ 

“Please tell me what’s wrong, Draco. I hate seeing you like this.”, quiet words drifted through the door as George inched his way through them, trying to not disturb them and catch their attention. 

He breathed a sigh of relief as he found himself in the bathroom without being discovered before he looked around and his brows flew to his hairline. 

Malfoy was indeed there, but he wasn’t alone anymore. Myrtle was there, sitting beside him on the window seal, one of her hands patting his shoulder, or at least trying to. 

He stopped in his tracks, waiting for the snobbish rejection that was sure to come, but to his great surprise, the blond just continued to sit there, staring at the opposite wall, not caring in the slightest that the ghost was touching him. 

George leaned and then slid down the wall, sitting down right across the blond, feeling a bit unnerved as those grey eyes stared right at him, even though he knew that Draco couldn’t see him. 

“I...”, the blond began and immediately stopped, biting his bottom lip as he thought. 

“You know you can tell me anything, right? I mean, you can trust me.”, Myrtle said, and George could see it in her face that she was sincere. Draco obviously thought so too, since he nodded and started talking. 

“It’s stupid really, I... I don’t know why I’m still thinking about it. Someone said something to me today and I can’t stop thinking about it. I mean, it’s not like he was the first to say that or at least a version of it to me since the end of the war, and I’ve gotten used to hearing it. After all, I deserve it for everything I’ve done.”, Draco said, dropping his chin on his knees, his arms wrapping around his legs as if hugging himself. 

George blanched at the words, as soon as he realized that Draco was talking about him and their confrontation, already regretting ever stepping foot into this bathroom. He felt filthy sitting there, listening to something that was obviously not for his ears, knowing that the blond would curse him to an inch of his life if he was to be discovered. 

He was just about to get up and leave when Draco’s next words caught his attention. 

“I remember the first time I saw him, I mean, really saw him, not as the weasels' brother or part of the twins, but him. I was fourteen, it was the Yule Ball since that was the year of Triwizard’s tournament. I was standing in the corner of the room near the dance stage, finally catching some alone time after escaping Pansy and was just chilling when the crowd parted and I saw him.”, Draco whispered, his eyes glazing slightly as he lost himself in the memory. George barely dared to breathe, rooted to the floor as he was, unable to move a muscle as he stared at the blond. 

“He was standing in the middle of the floor, eyes closed, his body swaying with the music, completely lost in the moment. And then he smiled. Salazar, he smiled and I remember thinking that I had never seen anything so beautiful in my entire life. It was like being bathed in the warmest of sunlight, gorgeous and indescribable and I never wanted it to end. So, I stood there and watched, and I never really stopped.” 

Draco whispered, his eyes shining as a sad little smile spread over his lips. 

“Maybe that’s why what he said today hit me so hard. I realized that even after all this time I've still been harboring hope that one day he would smile that way at me, that he would see me, Draco, and that he would want me. Stupid, I know, but that’s hope to you.” 

Silence followed his quiet confession and after a while, Draco stood up and left after promising to come back tomorrow, leaving George to sit there alone. 

His head was buzzing, his hands shaking as he stood up and exited the bathroom, walking without aim as all the things that he just heard kept flying through his mind. 

One of them the most reoccurring, making him stop in his tracks as he finally realized. 

_Draco Malfoy is in love with me._


	3. ...but satisfaction brought it back.

“George, are you alright?”, Hermione’s voice snapped him back to the present, making him sit up straight, averting his eyes to his breakfast. 

“Sure. Just sleepy.”, George mumbled, avoiding her curious gaze as he stuffed his mouth with scrambled eggs. One of her eyebrows rose as she eyed him, but just as she was about to say something Ron appeared beside her, effectively snatching her attention. 

_Thank Merlin for Ron!_

George thought, even if he regretted that notion soon after as the two of them started making googly eyes at each other, making him abandon his breakfast. 

Not that he was especially hungry in the first place, in the state that he was in. He sighed as his eyes once again drifted to the other side of the hall where the reason for his loss of appetite was currently sitting. 

Draco Malfoy. 

The blond was sitting at the end of the Slytherin table slowly eating his breakfast, alone as usual, but now, after unwittingly getting to know him a bit better, George realized that it was probably not by choice. 

He glanced over the rest of the hall, watching the small clusters of people scattered around the tables, every once in awhile, glancing at the lone Slytherin before quickly turning back to their peers, a hushed conversation following their actions. 

_Deatheater. Scum. Filthy snake._

The whispers drifted to his ears, and something in his chest tightened. They were all talking about Draco. 

George felt like he was waking up from a dream, only now realizing what was going on. Of course, they had all lost someone in the war and Draco being the only Deatheater out of Azkaban was their scapegoat. 

They blamed him for everything because he was there, not even realizing that it was wrong. Sure, Malfoy had always been an asshole, a whiny brat that worshiped the ground his father walked on, but that was it, wasn’t it? He had been a brat, a stupid child, and nothing else. 

George suddenly remembered Harry’s words from weeks ago, something he heard but never truly processed until this point. 

_“You should have seen him on the stand, Hermione. I... I know he was awful to us in school, but, when he spoke of that year, living with Voldemort, I... I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.”_

Harry had just come back from Draco’s trial where he had testified on the blonde's behalf. At the time, George had been barely more than a vegetable, but he remembered thinking Harry stupid for feeling sorry about Malfoy. 

He shook his head, feeling angry with himself, as he realized just how wrong he had been. 

After that night when he had heard Draco talk about him, he felt confused and out of sorts. For one extraordinary hour, he even thought that Malfoy had known that he was there and that he had said all those things just to mess with his head, but he had quickly disregarded that train of thought. 

So, after calming down and getting smashed out of his mind, he came to the conclusion that Draco Malfoy was indeed in love with him. 

Unfortunately, that was the easiest part of this mess, since the hard part was deciding what he was going to do about it. He could, of course, do nothing and just go on pretending like nothing out of the ordinary had happened, but he couldn’t. 

_Draco Malfoy is in love with me._

He refused to dwell on the reason he couldn’t let it go, or why he kept catching himself staring at the blond whenever he was in the same room as him. Draco’s feelings were making enough of a mess in his head without adding his own to the mix. 

So, since he couldn’t let it go, he had decided to find out as much as he could about the man that was haunting his every waking hour and a couple of sleeping ones, _not that he was thinking about those._

And what he found out made him realize that he knew nothing about him at all. 

Draco Malfoy was an enigma. He was a spoiled, entitled, rich brat who sneered at anyone he found was beneath him, but he was also a son who loved his mother so much that he was willing to try and kill a man so much more powerful than him in order to save her life. 

He was a man who had during his fifth year signed up for the Inquisitorial squad, elated at the thought of holding power over his peers, and yet, when the Deatheathers were ruling the school he shied away from it all, refusing to participate whenever it was possible. 

He was a man who had stood in front of his family and lied to their faces, saving George’s brother’s and his friend’s lives in the process. He could have told the truth, that day in the Malfoy Manor; one word from him was all it would have taken for Voldemort to win the war, and yet he didn’t. 

_Why?_

The question kept going through George’s mind, unanswered. One thing was certain though, Draco Malfoy was a mystery, one George was dying to solve. 

♥ 

_Just keep eating. He won’t do anything to you out in the open. Probably._

Draco thought as he bit into his toast, not even tasting it as his body filled with anxiety. 

George was staring at him, again, something that has been happening for a week now ever since their lovely meeting in the dungeon corridor. 

He was up to something, Draco was sure of it, and he had spent the last week waiting for some kind of prank to befall him. Nothing had actually happened so far, but he knew that it was coming. Why else would the redhead spend his time watching him unless he was planning something nefarious. 

A small voice at the back of his mind kept whispering that maybe George was beginning to like him, but he squashed it every time it appeared since it was a ludicrous thought. Even though the fact that George hasn’t actually done or said anything to him since that day, and was actively avoiding him except for the staring, kept bugging him. 

_Maybe..._

_No! That’s probably his plan! Lure me into a false sense of security and then snap. Oh, he was a snake in lion’s clothing, alright._

_Perfect. Fucking. Asshole._

Draco rolled his eyes at his thoughts, seriously starting to question his own sanity, as he stepped away from the table and left the Great Hall. 

He was almost at quidditch pitch, his new assigned place, much to his delight, when someone calling his name snatched his attention. 

He turned around, mentally preparing himself for insults that were surely on their way, his hand inching toward his wand just in case, before he went rigid at the sight of George Weasley jogging toward him. 

_Fuck._

“Fast, little bugger, aren’t you?”, George said as he bent down in half, breathing harshly as he came to a stop in front of him. Draco just continued to stand there, blinking at him as if stupefied. 

“Um.” 

“Eloquent, Malfoy.”, George quipped, a very good rendition of Snape’s smirk passing over his lips, making Draco do a double-take before he snapped back to himself and closed his mouth with a snap. 

“Funny. Well, here I am, so what's it gonna be? Hexes, curses, some name-calling just to spice things up a bit? But if you could do it quickly I'd really appreciate it since I have work to do. ”, Draco said, proud of himself for remaining calm and collected even though inside he was screaming. 

The smirk slipped from the redhead’s lips, as he blinked at Draco’s words, a small frown appearing between his brows. 

“What?” 

“That’s why you’re here, right? To tell me to go away, kill myself, call me names, and such. So, go on with it, I’m listening.” 

At that, George took a step back as if slapped, his eyes going wide as he started to back away. 

Draco huffed and turned around, continuing his way to the pitch unable to stay there without giving himself away. It was easy putting on the Malfoy mask and going on seemingly unaffected when it was anybody else, just nameless faces in the crowd, but George, George was another thing. Draco felt raw and exposed any time the redhead so much as looked at him, feeling as if the man knew every one of his secrets. 

“I’m sorry!”, George suddenly exclaimed making Draco stop in his tracks. He turned around and almost jumped out of his skin as he came face to face with the man of his dreams, only then realizing just how close they were standing. 

“I’m sorry, Malfoy, Draco... I didn’t mean what I said that day, or I did, but not really. I was just angry; I’ve been angry for so long that I snapped and took it out on you. But it was wrong, what I said, it was wrong and I’m sorry.” 

The words were said in a rush, each one overlapping the next, but Draco understood him. George was looking at him, his eyes wide and full of regret, his face so close to his own that Draco could feel his hot breath tickling his lips. 

He swallowed a lump in his throat, as he willed himself to say something, but it seemed impossible, his heart beating so hard that he thought he was for sure having a heart attack. 

_I knew he was planning to kill me._


	4. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day

“What are you doing?!”, Draco whispered harshly, as George took a seat at the table directly across from him during breakfast. He glanced around, realizing that everyone was staring at the two of them, his eyes falling on the weasel whose mouth was actually hanging open as he stared at his brother in bewilderment. 

“Um... eating. You know, breakfast is the most important meal of the day and you should never skip it.” 

Draco threw a glare in his direction but the infuriating man just smiled before taking a bite of his porridge. 

“Weasley.”, he said slowly, holding on to his temper with his teeth, “Why are you eating at the Slytherin table? I know that the Great Hall is in fact 'great' but you would think that after so many years of living in this castle you would have by now learned your way around it.” 

_There. That was polite-ish._

“You know, you are cute when you’re trying to be nice. Your brows furrow slightly as if it’s physically painful for you to do so.”, George said with a smirk, before going back to his breakfast as a man starved, not caring in the slightest that the eyes of everyone in the room were on them. 

_Did he just? Oh, Merlin, I've started hallucinating._

Draco shook his head and began eating, resolutely looking anywhere but at the man sitting across from him. 

He was still reeling from the events of the previous day, the memory of George’s heartfelt apology constantly on his mind. He had almost ended up squashed beneath quidditch stands that he was trying to fix until Professor Flitwick had enough and sent him away, not to return before he set his head straight. 

So, he had taken a walk in an attempt to clear his mind and when that didn’t work, he went to bed early thinking that a good night’s sleep was the answer. It wasn’t. He ended up tossing and turning, until finally giving up at the early hours of the morning. 

So now, he was tired and cranky and the last thing he needed was George Weasley at his table when he was trying not to fall asleep in his porridge. 

He felt awkward in his presence after spending so much time in solitude. It had been lonely fat first, but after a few weeks he had kind of gotten used to the fact he was alone, and now, when he no longer was, he couldn’t remember how to act. 

He felt like a kid starting school for the first time, not knowing anyone and still not sure how to go about making friends, not that George Weasley would ever consider calling him a friend. 

It was just a fluke, he decided after a while, a prank or a joke George was playing on his real friends. 

_Having breakfast with a Deatheather. Gotcha!_

That particular thought made something in his chest squeezed tightly, since even though he knew he was right, the idea of being the butt of the joke, especially from George was a bitter pill to swallow. 

He stood suddenly and rushed out of the Hall, not caring for appearances, as his eyes started to burn to his great shame. He could hear George calling his name as he started to run toward the dungeons, before a hand wrapped around his arm pulling him to a stop. 

“What the fuck!?”, George exclaimed, breathing harshly from having to run after him. 

“Are you training for a marathon or something?” 

“The mara-what?”, Draco asked perplexed, for a moment forgetting about the reason they were there. 

“Muggle thing. Never mind. What’s up with you? Why did you leave?” 

Draco huffed, starting to turn away, as he remembered the reason for his abrupt leaving. 

“Please, do you think I’m stupid?”, he sneered. 

“I get it. You hate me, so you thought why don’t have a few laughs, make everybody think we were friends, what does it matter. He’s just a Deatheather.”, Draco said, his hands shaking as he brushed his hair out of his face. George just stood there, staring at him with wide eyes. 

“Is that why you apologized? To make fun of me? You know, I never pegged you as a cruel type. Although I deserve it, so I guess that cancels it.” 

By the time he was finished, he was breathing hard, his whole body shaking, and to his utter shame, his eyes were filled with tears. But he couldn’t help it, this was George, the man he fell in love with when he barely knew what love was. He was powerless in front of him. 

“Malfoy.”, George started before stopping, running his hands over his face. 

“Draco, no. You’ve got it all wrong. I... I would never do something like that, I may be a prankster and immature sometimes but I’m not cruel nor am I a liar. When I said I was sorry, I meant that.” 

Draco blinked, his brows furrowing as he stared at the redhead’s face, his eyes searching for even a trace of deception. He couldn’t find any. 

“Then what was all of that back there about?”, he asked, his voice quiet and small as he stared at the ground letting his hair fall over his eyes. George smiled at the question, one of his hands coming up to his face and taking the lock of his hair between his fingers before gently putting it behind Draco’s ear. 

Draco froze as the man did so, his heart skipping a beat at the feeling of those hands on any part of his person. 

“That’s what friends do, right? They eat breakfast together.”, George said in the end, a small, unsure smile spreading over his lips as if he wasn’t sure of Draco’s reaction to him proclaiming them friends. 

_Was there even a question why this man had stolen his heart so long ago?_

This wonderful human being, that was the epitome of everything good and light, was worried that someone like Draco would not want to be his friend, not even realizing that Draco would give anything, do anything just for a minute of his time. 

“Well, if we’re going to be friends you are going to have to do something about those clothes. Maroon, Weasley, really?” 

The sound of George’s booming laughter was like music to his ears. 


	5. How do you know?

He had a friend. Draco Malfoy had a friend, a real friend for the first time in his life and not just any friend but George Weasley and he had never felt more scared. 

It was easy going through life, never caring about anyone but his family, and something like a friendship had always been a thing of ridicule in his eyes. Allies, people that could do something for him or minions, the ones he could use when he had a need for them, that he knew, but friends, those were a great unknown. 

It had been a month since that day in the dungeons when George had called him his friend and Draco still had to pinch himself now and then in order to check that it was real and not just a wonderful dream his mind had concocted in order to relieve some of his loneliness. 

And it was wonderful, every day Draco got to spend with the redhead was amazing, even if he had to question his own sanity after a few rather memorable pranks George had roped him into participating. 

He honestly couldn't recognize himself, as he ran with George away from the entrance of one of the greenhouses, weasel's and Granger's voices shouting behind them as a horrible, putrid smell of one of the dung bombs they had dropped into the room spread through the air. 

“George Weasley, I know it was you! I’m telling Molly about this!”, Granger growled, as she hurriedly righted her shirt, evidence of their interrupted snogging session. 

“Salazar! I can’t believe I did this. You are a bad influence, Weasley.”, Draco said as they finally stopped running once they were inside the school, even as the memory of the weasel’s red face kept replaying in his mind making him double over with laughter. 

He was still chuckling slightly as he looked up to his partner in crime only to find him standing there staring at him with a strange look on his face. 

“George? Are you alright?”, he asked as the man just kept staring at him, his gaze so intense that the hair on the back of his neck stood in attention. 

“I... yeah, of course, I just remembered that I’ve promised Charlie and Harry that I would help them in Gryffindor common room with something.”, he mumbled before turning away and fleeing. 

Draco shook his head at the man, confused at his behavior before turning around and making his way down to his room in the dungeons. 

_Gryffindors_. 

♥ 

“Should we say something?”, Harry whispered from his place on Charlie’s lap, as the two of them watched George pacing from one side of the room to the other. 

They had been enjoying their free day in Harry’s room, for once able to relax and snog without anyone making fun of them or interrupting when George burst into the room, his eyes wide and a look on his face slightly manic. 

He didn’t even blink at the sight of them shirtless and in the midst of further undressing, just started pacing and mumbling to himself. 

“Shh. You’ve gotta let him come to you and not approach him first, or he’ll get spooked and attack.” 

“He’s not a bloody dragon, Charlie!”, Harry exclaimed, shaking his head at his boyfriend, their loud discussion snapping George out of his thoughts. 

“I’m in love Draco Malfoy. I think.”, George said, effectively ending their discussion as the two of them slowly turned around, two pairs of eyes blinking owlishly at him. 

“Oh.”, Harry said, eloquent as ever. 

“I mean, I think I am, but maybe it’s just lust? Can you be in lust with someone? And could you even call it lust when you haven’t even kissed them?” 

More blinking. 

“Okay. You’ve been a great help. Thanks.”, he said as he headed toward the door, before Harry’s hand clamped around his arm, pulling him back into the room and shutting the door. 

“Wait. Just, wait a minute. You can’t just say that you’re in love with Malfoy and expect us to not have a stroke. I mean Malfoy!”, Harry exclaimed, his eyes wide and glazed as he sat beside his boyfriend. 

“Um...Sorry.”, George quipped, smiling as he did so. 

“Really, Malfoy?”, Harry said, still unable to wrap his head around it. George frowned at the question, suddenly unsure if coming there was a good idea. 

He glanced at his brother, trying to gauge his reaction, but Charlie just sat there, a pensive look on his face as he studied him. 

“Yeah, Malfoy.”, George mumbled as he looked down at his hands. 

“Is that so hard to believe? I mean, I know the two of you have history and that Draco was horrible back then, but he’s changed and I thought you thought the same. After all, he is here and not in Azkaban because of you.” 

“He’s funny and sweet, and arrogant and snotty, and beautiful all the same. I... I don’t know, he’s my friend and I like him, maybe even more. But I’ve never been in love so that’s why I came here. Before, Fred... he was the one who I would go to, but now I... I don’t know.”, he finished in a rush, feeling frustrated with himself. His mind was in disarray and it was all Draco’s fault. 

He had been happy for the first time since the war ended, since Fred... and it was all thanks to the blond. He was like a breath of fresh air, a rainbow after the storm, bringing George back to life so effortlessly just by being. 

It all hit him when they stormed into the school, running away from his brother and his enraged girlfriend. He looked toward Draco, a funny quip at the tip of his tongue when the blond started laughing. 

He had never seen him laugh that way, a small smile or a smirk were Draco’s usual sign of mirth, and the sight of the unbidden happiness on his face made him freeze. 

He was the most beautiful creature Geroge had ever seen, and he lost himself in the sight, only coming back to reality when Draco questioned him about his wellbeing. 

That’s when he ran and came here, scared shitless of the feelings coursing through his blood. He had wanted to kiss him, to snatch him up and devour him, make him his and he almost did before coming to his senses and fleeing. 

He didn’t want to make a mistake, he had to make sure that what he was feeling was true before attempting anything with the blond. He wasn’t scared of getting rejected, after all, this whole thing had started because he found out about Draco’s feelings for him, something that hadn’t changed during the last month. 

He had caught the blond watching on a few occasions, a sad smile on his lips every time he did so, only to blush and look away when he realized that he was caught staring. 

George always pretended not to have noticed, unsure of what to do or say since his head was a mess. 

The crux of things was that he cared about Draco, he wasn’t lying when he said that the blond was his friend. He cared about him and the last thing he wanted to do was to hurt him. And he would hurt him, a lot, if he started something more only to then change his mind and backtrack. 

“I know, George. I know he’s changed, and I don’t have anything against him. I was just surprised, that’s all.”, Harry said after a while, sending him a goofy smile. 

“I don’t know what to do. How do you know?” 

“I can’t tell you what to do, since you are the only one who knows what’s in your heart, but I can tell you one thing.", Charlie said, coming to sit beside his brother, one of his hands coming around his shoulders.

"After the war, for some time I felt as if I’ve lost two of my brothers, not one. You were there, but you weren’t really. It felt like you were just existing, breathing, eating, sleeping but that’s all. You stopped living. 

And then a month ago you started hanging out with Malfoy. And at first, I thought that you had completely lost your mind, but as the days went by, I saw the changes. You were eating better, sleeping better, and then one day you laughed. It was during breakfast and you were sitting with him as usual. He had said something and you laughed, you laughed for the first time since the battle and it was because of him. That was the day I stopped fearing losing you. So, if you are really in love with him, I will not stand in your way. Because a man who had brought my brother back is a man worth loving in my eyes.” 


	6. Damsel in distress

George’s hands were shaking as he made his way down from the Gryffindor common room toward the classroom on the first floor where he knew Draco was currently at, thanks to a certain map that was tucked in his back pocket. 

He still wasn’t sure about what he was going to do in regards to his feelings toward a certain blond, but he was not a coward and wasn’t about to hide away until he did figure it out. After all, Draco deserved better than that, so George had put on his big boy’s pants and went in search of his friend. 

Raised voices caught his attention just as he made the turn to the classroom, his brows furrowing once he was in front of the door once he realized that the voices were coming from within the room. 

He stepped inside, freezing in his tracks at the sight that greeted him. 

“Filthy snake. You should have never come back. Crucio!” 

At the sound of Draco’s piercing screams, George snapped into action, pulling his wand and disarming the man that had Draco under the torture curse, before flicking his wand again, tying and gagging the offender in the process. 

“Draco!”, he exclaimed, running to the blondes' side, his eyes going wide at the sight of him shaking uncontrollably on the floor. 

“I’m alright.”, Draco rasped, his voice quiet and filled with pain, as he tried and then failed to sit up. His face was bloody and George realized that his nose was broken and his lip split. Obviously, the torture curse was not the only thing he had to endure before George had shown up. 

George’s blood began to boil as he stared at his friend, and he turned around, brandishing his wand at the man lying a bit further. 

_Of course. Fucking Smith._

He thought as he finally realized who the person he had disarmed was. Zacharias Smith, the Hufflepuff coward. 

“Leave him. He’s not worth it.”, Draco said as he somehow managed to stand up and walk toward George, his legs shaking so badly that he had to grip George’s shirt in order to stay standing. George immediately wrapped an arm around Draco’s waist, his other hand going down behind his knees until he had Draco firmly in his arms. 

“We need to get you to Madam Pomfrey.”, he said as he started making his way out of the classroom, ignoring the glare Draco was sending him at his handling of him. 

“No. Just take me to my room, please.”, Draco whispered, something in his voice betraying just how desperate he was that George had no other option but to listen to him, changing his direction in order to take them to the dungeons. 

Once they were in front of Draco’s doors, the blond touched them with his wand, making them glow blue for a second before they clicked open. 

George rushed them inside, setting Draco on the couch before summoning a few potions he knew he would need if he was to heal the man by himself. Ever the potion’s lover, the bottles flew right into his waiting arms, as George knew they would. Draco’s first love had been potions and his greatest desire had been to become a Potions Master, something he thought he could never be when his father was still around. But not anymore. 

George put the potions on the coffee table before sitting beside the hurt Slytherin, his wand already in his hand as he said the incantation. 

“Episkey!” 

Draco’s nose righted with a snap; just as a painful moan left his lips. 

“Merlin’s beard! A warning would have been nice, thank you very much!”, he growled as he glared at George, making the man smile despite the situation. 

“Sorry.” 

He motioned with his hand, letting Draco know that he was about to do more magic before he spoke the spell that would get rid of all the dried blood that was on Draco’s face and clothes. Once that was done, he winced as he took a first look at Draco’s face without all the gore masking the damage. 

His nose and jaw were black and blue, his bottom lip split and swollen and he was still shaking, the aftereffects of the cruciatus curse, for sure. 

George bit his lip as not to growl in fury, as every part of his body urged him to get up and go and find Smith and beat him to death, not really satisfied with the curse he had whispered toward the man as they had left the room. 

_Life-time baldness was too small a price to pay._

But Draco needed him, so he stayed put, taking the bruise balm and opening it before gently starting to spread the balm over Draco’s jaw. 

They were silent as he did so, his hands working on their own as his mind swam with various scenarios of Smith screaming in agony beneath his wand. 

He shook his head and looked up to find Draco staring at him. 

“You saved me.”, he said in wonder, his eyes going soft as he gazed at him. 

“Yes.”, George said, wincing as the words left his mouth, feeling stupid and out of sorts the longer Draco looked at him. Those pesky feelings were making a comeback and this time he had nowhere to run since he couldn’t very well leave Draco to fend for himself in the state that he was in. Not that he would ever do so. 

“Why?”, Draco asked after a moment, his brows furrowed as if George was a riddle he couldn’t solve. 

“What do you mean?”, George asked perplexed. 

“Why are you here? Why me? You’re smart and funny and kind, you could have chosen anyone to spend your time with and yet you chose me. I just don’t get it. After everything I’ve done, after all the shit that I’ve pulled, I don’t deserve it. I don’t deserve you.” 

He looked away then, as if unable to look at him anymore while waiting for his answer, and that’s when George finally realized. 

_I’m in love with Draco Malfoy._

And it was easy. He wasn't afraid anymore, as he looked at the man that had stolen his heart in a few weeks. 

Well, he already knew it, somewhere deep inside of his mind, but this was the moment he was finally ready to face it. 

Maybe it was earlier that day when he had panicked and ran, or the day when he had finally convinced Draco to pull a prank with him. Or the day this whole thing started when he had apologized. 

And maybe, just maybe, it was that night, so fucking long ago, when he was dancing in the middle of the floor and saw a beautiful, blond boy, looking at him like George was the center of his universe. 

But, in the end, it didn’t really matter, because he was in love and that was the only important thing. 

So, he set the bottles aside and then turned toward Draco, taking the blonde’s chin in his hand and urging him to look up, before he smiled. He smiled like he hadn’t in years, his smile only growing as Draco’s eyes widened at the sight before he leaned down and kissed him. 


End file.
